Former Tottenham boss Harry Redknapp has slammed the egos inside the Manchester City dressing room.

Redknapp has sympathy for Roberto Mancini and wrote in The Sun: "No one could show more patience, keep more faith or do more to accommodate the temperaments and temper tantrums of the egos at Manchester City.

"But even the great Bill Shankly could not manage that club.

"He would not be able to put up with the mental baggage - Louis Vuitton of course - that goes with trying to run a team of superstars.

"Bill grew up playing football on the streets, he was blunt and saw football as a simple game.

"Sadly, that's not the case any more. We all know money is king.

"But equally, the role of manager at a top club like City has been greatly diminished. Mancini is a hostage to that as much as any.

"Look how Carlos Tevez went AWOL on a golf course last season for four months.

"He eventually decided to return to work for the club which pays him handsomely and now it's as if he's never been away.

"He comes back and City go on to win the Premier League title for the first time. He scores goals, the fans cheer his name and he even rubs it in by celebrating every time he scores with a mock golf swing.

"And Mancini is caught in the middle.

"It's the same with Balotelli. Mancini knows he needs him and is effectively powerless to do anything about the strops and the trouble, which is never far away.

"We all saw Balotelli mumbling and muttering after being subbed at West Brom last month.

"My Italian's patchy but I knew he wasn't saying thanks to the boss."